Toxonotus comatus, Poinar & Legalov, 2016

Poinar, George & Legalov, Andrei A., 2016, New Anthribidae (Coleoptera: Curculionoidea) in Dominican and Mexican ambers, Palaeontologia Electronica 148 (1), pp. 1-38 : 4-5

Toxonotus comatus sp. nov.

Figure 2

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Holotype. Deposited in the PACO (accession # C-100).

Description. Length body, 4.3 mm; length rostrum, 0.9 mm. Body brownish-black with covering of distinct, dense, dark, semierect setae. Rostrum wide and short, 0.5 times as long as pronotum, flat, with dorsal median carina interrupted at base by transverse groove; antennal scrobes foveiform, lateral; forehead wide, flattened, punctate; eyes large, distinctly convex, 0.6 times longer than wide; vertex weakly convex and densely punctate; temples quite short, 0.5 times as long as length of eye; antennae inserted near base of rostrum, elongate, reaching humeri; first antennomere (scape) 2.5 times longer than wide; funicle with second to eighth antennomeres elongate-conical; second antennomere 4.0 times longer than wide, 1.2 times as long as and 0.8 times as narrow as first antennomere; third antennomere 4.1 times longer than wide, 0.8 times as long as and 0.7 times as narrow as second antennomere; third to sixth antennomeres subequal in width; fourth antennomere 4.5 times longer than wide, 0.9 times as long as third antennomere; fifth to eighth antennomeres subequal in length; fifth antennomere 3.6 times longer than wide, 0.9 times as long as fourth antennomere; sixth antennomere subequal to fifth antennomere; seventh antennomere 2.7 times longer than wide, 1.4 times as wide as sixth antennomere; eighth antennomere subequal to seventh antennomere; eighth antennomere 0.7 times longer than wide, 1.3 times as wide as seventh antennomere; club not compact, 4.8 times longer than wide, 0.5 times as long as funicle; first antennomere of club 2.3 times longer than wide, 1.8 times as long as and 2.0 times as wide as eighth antennomere; second antennomere of club 1.2 times longer than wide, 0.5 times as long as and equal in width to first antennomere of club; third antennomere of club 2.0 times longer than wide, 1.1 times as long as and 0.7 times as narrow as second antennomere of club. Pronotum bell-shaped; 1.3 times longer than wide at apex, 0.9 times longer than wide in middle and at base, with long lateral carinae; disk flattened, densely and finely punctate, with three black tufts of setae; apical margin of pronotum with pair of erect scale tufts; transverse dorsal pronotal carina basal; scutellum wide-trapezoidal. Elytra elongate and distinctly convex, 1.6 times longer than wide at base, 1.5 times longer than wide in middle, 2.0 times longer than wide at apical fourth, 2.0 times as long as pronotum; greatest width behind middle; elytron with four black tufts of setae; humeri weakly convex; striae regular and thin; strial punctures small, oval, dense; elytral intervals flattened, wide, 1.3–2.5 times as wide as striae, very small and finely punctate; apices of elytra not rounded; pygidium not concealed. Thorax punctate; precoxal portion of prosternum quite elongate, 1.7 times as long as procoxal cavities, 4.0 times as long as postcoxal portion; postcoxal portion 0.4 times as long as procoxal cavities; procoxal cavities separated; mesocoxal cavities widely separated, metanepisternum narrow. Abdomen weakly flattened ventrally; first ventrite 0.5 times as long as length of metacoxal cavities; second ventrite 1.5 times as long as length of first ventrite; third ventrite equal in length to second ventrite; fourth ventrite 0.8 times as long as length of third ventrite; fifth ventrite 1.1 times as long as length of fourth ventrite. Legs long, not villose with long white hairs; pro- and mesocoxae round; metacoxae transverse; femora clavate, without teeth; trochanters obconical; profemora 2.7 times longer than wide; mesofemora 3.1 times longer than wide; metafemora 3.0 times longer than wide; tibiae almost straight; protibiae 7.0 times longer than wide in middle; metatibiae 6.6 times longer than wide in middle; tarsi long; all third tarsomeres separate; first to third tarsomeres conical; second tarsomere embracing third tarsomere laterally; fifth tarsomere elongate; tarsomeres with pulvilli on underside; tarsal claws free, large, diverging, with basal teeth.

Type locality. Amber mine in the Cordillera Septentrional of the northern portion of the Dominican Republic.

Etymology. The specific epithet is taken from the Latin “comatus ” equals hairy, in reference to the hairy elytra of the fossil.

Comparison. The new species is similar to T. cornutus ( Say, 1831) from the USA and Mexico but differs by the elytron having four black setal tufts and elytra lacking white spots in upper third. From T. penicellatus ( Schaeffer, 1904) in North and Central America, it differs by the smaller setal tufts on the pronotum, dark setae on the body and a short, wide pronotum.

Remarks. The foveiform scrobes, basal transverse dorsal pronotal carina and rostrum with a dorsal median carina interrupted at the base by transverse groove are features of the tribe Platystomini . The new species belongs to the genus Toxonotus based on having all third tarsomeres separate.

Figures

FIGURE 2. Holotype of Toxonotus comatus sp. nov. PACO no. C-100 in Dominican amber. 1, dorsal view, scale bar equals 1.0 mm; and 2, lateral view, scale bar equals 1.2 mm.